| (E) The number of membrane modules being replaced or
changed for each membrane unit.
(5) Public water systems that furnish for public or
private use drinking water containing added fluoride may not permanently
terminate the fluoridation of water unless it provides both written
notice to the executive director 60 days before the termination and
written notice to customers as required by §290.122(j) of this
title (relating to Public Notification).
(k) Planning material acceptance. Planning material
for improvements to an existing system which does not meet the requirements
of all sections of this subchapter will not be considered unless the
necessary modifications for correcting the deficiencies are included
in the proposed improvements, or unless the executive director determines
that reasonable progress is being made toward correcting the deficiencies
and no immediate health hazard will be caused by the delay.
(l) Exceptions. Requests for exceptions to one or more
of the requirements in this subchapter shall be considered on an individual
basis. Any water system which requests an exception must demonstrate
to the satisfaction of the executive director that the exception will
not compromise the public health or result in a degradation of service
or water quality.
(1) The exception must be requested in writing and
must be substantiated by carefully documented data. The request for
an exception shall precede the submission of engineering plans and
specifications for a proposed project for which an exception is being
requested.
(2) Any exception granted by the commission is subject
to revocation.
(3) Any request for an exception which is not approved
by the commission in writing is denied.
(4) The executive director may establish site-specific
requirements for systems that have been granted an exception. The
requirements may include, but are not limited to: site-specific design,
operation, maintenance, and reporting requirements.
(5) Water systems that are granted an exception shall
comply with the requirements established by the executive director
under paragraph (4) of this subsection.
(m) Notification of system startup or reactivation.
The owner or responsible official must provide written notification
to the commission of the startup of a new public water supply system
or reactivation of an existing public water supply system. This notification
must be made immediately upon meeting the definition of a public water
system as defined in §290.38 of this title.
(n) Actions required of the owner or operator of a
public drinking water system. The commission may require the owner
or operator of a public drinking water supply system that was constructed
without the approval required by THSC, §341.035, that has a history
of noncompliance with THSC, Chapter 341, Subchapter C or commission
rules, or that is subject to a commission enforcement action to take
the following action:
(1) provide the executive director with a business
plan that demonstrates that the system has available the financial,
managerial, and technical resources adequate to ensure future operation
of the system in accordance with applicable laws and rules. The business
plan must fulfill all the requirements for a business plan as set
forth in subsection (f) of this section;
(2) provide adequate financial assurance of the ability
to operate the system in accordance with applicable laws and rules.
The executive director will set the amount of the financial assurance,
after the business plan has been reviewed and approved by the executive
director.
(A) The amount of the financial assurance will equal
the difference between the amount of projected system revenues and
the projected cash needs for the period of time prescribed by the
executive director.
(B) The form of the financial assurance will be as
specified in Chapter 37, Subchapter O of this title and will be as
specified by the executive director.
(C) If the executive director relies on rate increases
or customer surcharges as the form of financial assurance, such funds
shall be deposited in an escrow account as specified in Chapter 37,
Subchapter O of this title and released only with the approval of
the executive director.
(o) Emergency Preparedness Plans for Affected Utilities
as defined in TWC §13.1394 and §13.1395.
(1) Each public water system that is also an affected
utility is required to adopt and submit to the executive director
an emergency preparedness plan in accordance with §290.45 of
this title and may use the template in Appendix G of §290.47
of this title. Emergency preparedness plans are required to be prepared
under the direction of a licensed professional engineer when an affected
utility has been granted or is requesting an alternative capacity
requirement in accordance with §290.45(g) of this title, or is
requesting to meet the requirements of TWC §13.1394 or §13.1395,
as an alternative to any rule requiring elevated storage, or as determined
by the executive director on a case-by-case basis.
(2) Each affected utility that supplies, provides,
or conveys surface water to wholesale customers shall include the
following provisions in its emergency preparedness plan.
(A) An affected utility as defined by TWC §13.1394
shall provide provisions for demonstrating the capability of each
raw water intake pump, water treatment plant, pump station, and pressure
facility necessary to provide water to its wholesale customers during
emergencies.
(B) An affected utility as defined by TWC §13.1395
shall provide provisions for the installation and maintenance of automatically
starting auxiliary generators or distributive generation facilities
for each raw water intake pump station, water treatment plant, pump
station, and pressure facility necessary to provide water to its wholesale
customers, or demonstrate the capability of providing raw water to
its wholesale customers during emergencies through alternative means
acceptable to the commission.
(C) Subparagraphs (A) and (B) do not apply to raw water
services that are unnecessary or otherwise subject to interruption
or curtailment during emergencies under a contract, as referenced
in TWC §13.1394 and §13.1395.
(3) The executive director shall review an emergency
preparedness plan submitted under this subsection. If the executive
director determines that the plan is not acceptable, the executive
director shall recommend changes to the plan. The executive director
must make its recommendations on or before the 90th day after the
executive director receives the plan. In accordance with the commission
rules, an emergency preparedness plan must include one of the options
listed in §290.45(h)(1)(A) - (N) of this title when operating
under TWC §13.1394, or options listed in §290.45(i)(1)(A)
- (H) of this title when operating under TWC §13.1395.
(4) An affected utility, defined in TWC §`13.1394
and §13.1395, shall implement the emergency preparedness plan
approved by the executive director.
(5) An affected utility may file with the executive
director a written request for an extension not to exceed 90 days,
of the date by which the affected utility is required under this subsection
to submit the affected utility's emergency preparedness plan or of
the date by which the affected utility is required under this subsection
to implement the affected utility's emergency preparedness plan. The
executive director may approve the requested extension for good cause
shown.
(6) The executive director may grant a waiver of the
requirements for emergency preparedness plans to an affected utility
if the executive director determines that compliance with this section
will cause a significant financial burden on customers of the affected
utility. The affected utility shall submit financial, managerial,
and technical information as requested by the executive director to
demonstrate the financial burden.
|
| Source Note: The provisions of this §290.39 adopted to be effective October 1, 1992, 17 TexReg 6455; amended to be effective November 3, 1995, 20 TexReg 8620; amended to be effective February 4, 1999, 24 TexReg 731; amended to be effective September 13, 2000, 25 TexReg 8880; amended to be effective May 16, 2002, 27 TexReg 4127; amended to be effective February 19, 2004, 29 TexReg 1373; amended to be effective January 9, 2008, 33 TexReg 198; amended to be effective December 10, 2009, 34 TexReg 8744; amended to be effective May 15, 2011, 36 TexReg 2860; amended to be effective November 8, 2012, 37 TexReg 8849; amended to be effectiveJuly 30, 2015, 40 TexReg 4769; amended to be effective January 3, 2019, 43 TexReg 8615; amended to be effective September 17, 2020, 45 TexReg 6375; amended to be effective December 21, 2023, 48 TexReg 7585 |
